Cye's Struggle
by Firestorm
Summary: Cye has a terrible day that starts at lunchtime, and it gets worse when Talpa finds out.
1. Chapt.1. Indenties

Disclaimer

Disclaimer! The Ronin Warriors do not belong to me! They belong to their right owners, Sunrise and Company. There are two new characters in this fic that are mine though. I just wrote this fic to show my appreciation, and my wishes for more episodes of the Ronin Warriors. Please don't sue me! Send me comment on my fic at [Fire79storm@Gateway.net][1]

**Cye's Struggle **

****

Chapt.1. Identies.

"Sage, would you get out of the frigging bathroom! You've been in there for over two hours!"

The loud knocking could be heard throughout the entire Koji mansion. It was a large white structure that had its own cabin right behind it and even had its own lake. Mia Koji, the owner of the mansion, who had received the place from her granfather when he passed away, sighed, and rubbed her temple. Sometimes it was not easy living with five teenagers, eve if they were heros who had saved the world from the evil demon known as Talpa. 

"I'll be out in a minute, Kento!" Sage hollered through the closed bathroom door.

"That's what you said earlier!" Kento snapped. "Arrghh!"

Mia chuckled to herself. She was sitting in the living room with a cup of green tea in her hand. It was early afternoon and she was thinking about the five boys living with her. They were the Ronin Warriors. They had come to her about a year ago when Talpa first invaded the mortal realm. They had special abilities and armors that would magically appear on them at will. Ryo Sanada, bearer of the Wildfire and Inferno armors. He had black hair, tiger blue eyes, owned a large white Himalayan tiger named White Blaze, and was the leader of the Ronin Warriors. He had a bit of temper, but his heart was big, and his loyalty to his friends was so great that he would sacrifice himself to save them. Sage Date, bearer of the Halo armor. He had violet eyes and blond hair with his bangs covering his right eye. Sage was into meditation. He was somewhat of a flirt and sometimes had to pay for it, when either they slapped him, or followed him everywhere. Poor Sage. Kento Rei Faun, owner of the Hardrock armor. It suited him well. He had blue black hair, blue eyes, and wore a yellow band around his forehead. Kento was a hardhead and could easily fall victim to pranks and illusions. He was physically the strongest out of all five Ronins, and loved to fight and eat. He was the joker of the group as well, and it wouldn't take long before someone would be laughing at what he had said. Rowen Hashiba. Wearer of the Strata armor. He had blue hair and dark blue eyes and wore a blue headband, that kept the one long forelock from getting into his eyes. Rowen was the genius of the group. It was said at one time that IQ was 250. Rowen loved to think things through before taking action. He was into reading and studying, and would spend hours into the night doing so, making up for lost sleep by sleeping in. Cye Mouri, the youngest Ronin Warrior. Wearer of the Torrent armor. Cye had light brown hair and seablue eyes. He was shy, but friendly, and would lend a shoulder for someone to cry on. He loved to cook and swim, and was friends with all ocean life. Cye would always get upset when he saw someone eating seafood, and would usually hyperventilate at the sight. Mia looked out the window and saw Ryo practicing with his soccer ball, trying to keep it away from White Blaze which was not an easy thing to do. White Blaze had already torn up three of them. 

Kento came downstairs, grumbling. " He has no respect!" he grumbled as he sat down on the couch. "SOME OF US WOULD LIKE TO TAKE A SHOWER!"

Mia covered her ears. "Kento, do you have to be so loud?"

Kento looked toward her and grinned a little sheepishly. "Sorry, Mia." Mia only shook her head as Kento stood up and headed for the kitchen. "Think I'll go see what my bed Cye's upto."

Mia shook her head as Kento disappeared. She started counting. Three. Two. One.

"Kento, get out of here!"

Kento was suddenly back into the living room, with a shocked look on his face. Mia only covered her mouth and chuckled as she looked back toward the TV program she was watching.

   [1]: mailto:Fire79storm@Gateway.net



	2. Chapt.2.Disturbed

**Cye's Struggle.**

Chapt.2. Disturbed. 

Cye was not happy. In fact he was pretty steamed. He had been working on this new recipe for over an hour, and it had almost been done. Kento had suddenly decided to come in, investigate, more like devour the new vegetable noodle soup he was making, when he had suddenly knocked an open bottle of oil right into the soup. Now Cye would have to start all over again. Life could be so cruel at times.

Cye started his soup all over again, dumping the ruined soup into the garbage disposal. He worked hard to get that soup done, and when the kitchen door opened, he expected Kento to come in, but no, it was only Ryo and White Blaze. Cye sighed in relief.

"Oh, hey, Cye," Ryo greeted as he went over to the fridge and grabbed a can of pepsi. He popped it open and took a long drink, then wiped his mouth and looked toward the pot. "Whatacha making?" he asked.

"Another pot of vegetable noodle soup," Cye grumbled in his English accent.

Ryo looked at him funny. "Kento again?" he guessed. He must have guessed correctly because Cye nodded.

Ryo hated to see Cye get mad. It was a rare occurrence but when Cye did get mad, he was dangerous, because he could control his anger, and it would last longer. "Don't worry, Cye," Ryo reassured him. "We'll make sure Kento leaves you alone, K?"

Cye nodded, not speaking. White Blaze rubbed his head against Cye's small frame, hoping to help the young Ronin. It seemed to help because Cye seemed less tense.

Ryo smiled at his tiger as he drank his pop. Good old, White Blaze.

In the netherworld known as the Dynasty, Talpa sat on his throne. He was the only one in the room, his Warlords were all in the kitchen eating. Even though they were immortal they still got hungry. Talpa never did figure that one out.

He had three Warlords, and two Warladies. Sekhmet, Warlord of Venom, Dias, Warlord of Illuision, Cale, Warlord of Corruption, Delia, Warlady of Weakness, and Kania, Warlady of Destruction. Delia was imposing and some what bossy. Her hair was purple and short, just past her chin. She had dark ice blue eyes, and a muscular figure. Her armor when she donned it, was black and purple, and she carried twin sais. Her surekill, Ultimate Pain was stunning and powerful. Kania had long black hair mxed with pink stripes running through it. Her eyes were azure blue, and she was strong even though she was slender. Her armor was blue and black, and she carried two daggers. Her surekill, Kiss of Sleep.

Talpa growled to himself. Things had been quiet in the Dynasty as no one could come up with a plan to get the Ronin Armor, because so far none had been too good. With a wave of his hand, an image screen appear, and Talpa took a look inside the Koji mansion.


	3. Chapt.3.Miserable Feelings.

**Cye's Struggle.**

Chapt.3. Miserable Feelings.

Sage finally came out of the bathroom, his hair now done. He was wearing a white shirt with khakis, and black shoes. "Bathroom's free!" he called. Kento heard that, and quickly raced up the steps. "About time!"

Sage only shook his head and wandered back to the room he and Rowen shared. Sage peered at the lumpfilled bed. He walked over to it, and shook the lump. "Rowen, it's after 1:00. Get up."

"Go away. Nee slee." 

Sage sighed. "Rowen, get your lazy prick self outta that bed right now!"

"Leave me alone!"

"Alright, you asked for it!" Sage jumped onto Rowen's bed, and began jumping up and down on it. As he came back down several times, he spoke. "Now. I. Said. To. Get. Your. Butt. Out. Of. Bed."

"S.stop it, Sage! I'm up! I'm up!"

Sage stopped jumping and grinned. Rowen was now awake, and glaring at his blond haired friend. "About time!" He hopped off the bed and walked out the door. "And don't think about falling asleep, because after lunch we practice!"

Rowen wiped his face and yawned. "Yeah, yeah."

About ten minutes later Rowen was dressed. He was still tired and yawning constantly as he made his way down the stairs. He, like the other Ronins, had no idea they were being watched. Rowen went into the kitchen, and saw Cye at the stove, and Ryo at the table. Ryo was leafing through a martial arts weapons magazine.

"Morning, Ro," Ryo said cheerfully.

"Morning, Ryo," the blue haired genuis replied. He looked toward Cye. "Making lunch, Cye?"

"Yes, again," Cye replied stirring the soup. "Kento came in here earlier and ruined the first one, so I had to start all over again."

Rowen shook his head as he walked over to the fridge and got out the milk. He poured himself a glass of it, then returned the milk to the fridge. He joined Ryo at the table. "When we practicing?" he asked, drinking his milk.

"After lunch," Ryo replied. Rowen nodded and drank his milk. They suddenly heard singing. Kento's taking a shower, they all thought. Cye suddenly had an evil smile on his face. He headed over to the sink and suddenly turned on the hot water. Seconds later… "Auggghh! Turn off the hot water!"

Ryo, Rowen, and White Blaze stared at Cye's face. A couple of minutes later Cye shut the water off. He had a big smile on his face. "There, payback!"

The two Ronins only shook their heads at the young friend.

Sage rolled his eyes when he heard Kento singing. He was using the telephone, getting ready to dial up a girl at school, when he suddenly heard, "Auggghh! Turn off the hot water!"

Sage shook his head and dialed the numbers. Mia glanced over at the blond teen and just shook her head. Sage was constantly on the phone. Either he was calling some girl, or they were calling him. She couldn't wait to see the phone bill. If it was high, Sage could pay half of it.

"Sara, how are you? It's me Sage. What's a beautiful girl like yourself going to be doing this weekend?" Sage twirled the cord around his fingers as he spoke on the phone.

Kento came downstairs, dressed in a pair of light blue jeans and a yellow t-shirt. He wasn't happy.

"What's wrong, Kento?" Mia asked innocently. "Shower go cold on you again?"

"Yes," he mumbled as he sat on the couch next to Sage. He folded his arms and looked toward the TV. Some soap opera was on. He looked at the clock. Man, it's almost 2! I'm starving! Cye should be done with lunch by now. He got up just as Cye came into the living room. "Lunch is finally ready," he announced, giving Kento an angry look before disappearing back into the kitchen.

Kento sighed. "Man, how long is Cye gonna be mad at me?" he asked as Sage said good-bye on the phone and hung up. Sage stood up. "When you stop being a pig." He went into the dining room with Kento right behind him.

"I can't help if I need more food than the rest of you," Kento grumbled. "I have a high metabolism."

"Nah, you're just fat," Rowen answered as he walked in. Kento glared at him, but Mia quickly cut in. "C'mon, guys, let's just have a peaceful lunch for once."

Ryo and White Blaze came in followed by Cye who was carrying a pot of soup. Everyone could smell the delicious soup, and Kento couldn't wait to eat it.

Cye grabbed his arm. "You can wait, Kento," he said firmly. Kento pouted but Cye shook his head no. Kento sat back and grumbled.

"Ladies first," Mia said pouring some soup into her bowl. Ryo was next, then Sage, then Rowen, then Kento, and finally Cye. Lunch was going OK for the first several minutes, but when Kento went to get another bowl of soup, he accidenly bumped Cye's bowl, making the hot soup fall on him.

"Augh!" Cye cried, jumping to his feet. Everyone looked at the young warrior. Sage got up and grabbed a dish towel and handed it to Cye who wiped the mess of him. 

"You better go change, Cye," Rowen said.

"Cye?" Kento began, biting his lip. "I… I'm really sorry."

Cye took a deep breath and let it out. "That's OK, Kento. It was an accident." He turned and walked out of the dinin room.

Kento sighed and sat down, watching as Ryo cleaned the mess up. Now he felt really bad.


	4. Chapt.4.The Plan

****

Cye's Struggle

Chapt.4. The Plan. 

Cye changed into dry clean clothes, and threw the soup covered ones in the dirty clothes hamper. He could hear the others talking about him downstairsm wondering what was wrong with him. He had no idea. Usually, he was in such a good mood. What was the matter with him?

He stared at himself in the mirror. He was the smallest Ronin Warrior, and the youngest. He loved to cook and swim, and he loved sealife. He hated to fight, but the Armor of Torrent had chosen him to fight along with the other Ronin Warriors against Talpa. He only wished that he could be a normal fifteen year old.

Cye rubbed his face, then stepped out onto the balcony. He breathed in fresh air as he looked toward the sea. It seemed to be calling him. He stood up onto the balcony and stared straight ahead.

Sekhmet looked toward the Viewing Screen. He and the others were now back from eating. "What is Torrent doing?" he asked. The others shhsed him and watched as Torrent suddenly leaped off the balcony, somersault, and land safely upon his feet. The young Ronin took off running.

Talpa was laughing, as Kania peered closely at Cye's back. "Hmm, he's cute." Delia rolled her eyes.

"So Torrent seems to be having a problem!" Talpa suddenly said. "That could be to our advantage."

"What do you mean, Master Talpa?" Dias asked.

Talpa took a look at his five warriors. He lookd toward Sekhmet and Kania. "You two will be the ones to get Torrent." He looked toward Dias, Cale, and Delia. "You three will take some soldiers with you and distract the other Ronin scum! If you kill them, fine by me!"

They all bowed. "We wil not fail you, Master!" Cale promised.

"See to it that you do not!" Talpa warned.

The five of them teleported away.


	5. Chapt.5.A Fierce Battle

****

Cye's Struggle

Chapt.5. A Fierce Battle.

"Man, what's up with Cye?" Kento wondered as he ate more soup. "I thought he'd be done by now."

"Relax, Kento," Rowen said as he placed his empty bowl in the sink. "Cye'll come down. He can't stay mad forever. You and him are bestfriends. Like me and Sage."

"Sage and I," Mia corrected. Rowen rolled his eyes, and Ryo snickered.

"Whatever," Rowen said

And then suddenly White Blaze began growling, and all four Ronins felt it. A crashing sound was heard and suddenly they were face to with Dias, Cale, and Delia, who they had never met before so they didn't know it was a lady, and about fifty soldiers.

Instantly the four Ronins shed their clothes and appeared in their subarmor. Ryo wore a red and white subarmor, Sage wore a green and white subarmor, Kento wore an orange and white subarmor, and Rowen wore a blue and white subarmor.

"Destroy them!" Cale commanded the soldiers. And the soldiers attacked the Ronin Warriors. Ryo pounded his elbow against one, then kicked another into the wall. "White Blaze, get Mia outta here!" he cried.

White Blaze took out a soldier, then led Mia away to safety. The three warlords didn't bother following. It wasn't Mia they were after.

Rowen spun through the air, kicking at a soldier with both feet. He grabbed another and threw it out the window breaking the glass.

Kento lifted a soldier high above his head, and brought it down against another soldier. He punched another one out of his way.

Sage flipped one soldier over him, then smashed his foot through the chest. He knocke another one away with his arm, and then dodged a chain that suddenly flew toward his head. He grabbed onto the chain, and pulled so hard the owner flew around his head and right into the stove, denting it.

"Man, Mia and Cye's gonna be PO," Kento said as he avoided another chain. It struck another soldier through the head.

"Where's is Cye anyway?" Ryo wondered as he batted away another soldier. It sure was fun to see them crumple, then watch that black smoke rise up out of them like that.

"Yeah, he should have heard the fighting," Rowen stated.

"Something's wrong," Sage suddenly said. "I can feel it."

That was when all of their kanji began glowing. Virtue, Life, Wisdom, Justice. It finally hit them.

"Cye's in danger!"

Cale stepped forward. "Too bad for you, Wildfire. You and the other Ronin pests will not be given the time to rescue Torrent!"

"We'll see about that!" Ryo spat. "Armor of Wildfire! Dao Jin!"

"Armor of Strata! Dao Inochi!" Rowen cried.

"Armor of Halo! Dao Chi!" Sage cried.

"Armor of Hardrock! Dao Gi!" Kento cried.

Ribbons of cherryblossoms surrounded them as the armors formed on them. Ryo wore a red armor and carried two katanas, the Wildfire swords. Sage wore a green armor and carried a nodatchi, the Halo sword. Rowen wore a blue armor and carried a bow with neverending arrows in the quiver on his back. And Kento wore an orange armor and carried a three section staff.

"Let's rock and roll, dudes!" Kento shouted.

The battle between the seven began. Cale attacked Sage, and Sage swung his sword left and right, making it clang against Cale's. Cale sneered at him. "Still afraid of the darkness, Halo?"

Sage grunted. "Shows how much you know, Cale!"

"Then let's see you try this one on for size. Black Lightning Slash!"

Sage knew it was time to call his own surekull. "Thunder Bolt Cut!"

The two surekills struck both of them, and they cried out with pain.

"Sage!" Rowen cried.

"I… I'm… OK." Sage struggled to his feet.

Ryo was battling against the new warlord. And it wasn't easy. He matched him for strength. Man this is a hard battle. If only were here, he thought.

Cye stared at the lake. It was so peaceful out here. Here he came to think, and to just be alone. Hardly any of the others would swim with him, except for Ryo and maybe Sage for a time or two. Kento didn't know how to swim, and Rowen was afraid of the water due to his father trying to drown him during a drunken stupor. At least he could still swim with dolphins and whales, he thought.

"Hahahaha!"

Cye froze. He recognized that wicked laughter. He spun around quickly and found Sekhmet and another warlord behind him.

"Sekhmet!" he hissed, then glanced toward the other warlord. "Who are you?"

"Call me Kania, cutie."

Cye's mouth dropped. "You. You're a lady?"

"Surprised?"

Cye only stared.

"Kania, stop staring at him like that!" Sekhmet growled. "We have a job to do!"

Kania pouted and was ready to argue when they heard, "Armor of Torrent! Dao Shin!" 

"Blast!" Sekhmet bellowed. "Now we may not have a chance to grab him!"

Kania only yawned bored-like as they watched the transformation take place on Cye. He was now in a light blue armor, clutching a Yari.

Sekhmet took his swords, and raced at Cye. Cye's plan had been to get into the water, then he would finish Sekhmet off once and for all. He began to back away toward the water, when Kania was suddenly behind him, blocking his way.

"Sorry, handsome," she said to Cye's startled face. Cye snapped out of it, and swung his Yari at her, just in time to feel Sekhmet's sword strike at a shoulder. He quickly reacted and hit the Warlord with his weapon. Kania struck him with one of her daggers.

Cye flipped into the air, and landed some distance away. He steadied his Yari in front of him, and called on his surekill. "Super Wave Smasher!" 

A blast of water shot out of the tip of the Yari, and shot at Kania. She leapt out of the way. "My turn!" she cried. "Kiss of Sleep!"

Cye dodged the power as he quickly as he could, then had to dodge Sekhmet's Snake Fang Strike!

This is not good, he thought. Where are the other Ronin Warriors? They should be here by now!

"Give up, Torrent!" Sekhmet warned as he swung at Cye. Cye blocked it, then kicked the Warlord in the chest, sending him back a couple of feet.

"Never!" Cye cried.

"You'll pay for that!" Sekhmet bellowed angrily. "Snake Fang Strike!"

Cye cried out, "Super Wave Smasher!"

Kania watched as the two surekills went out toward each other. Torrent's back facing her. It was the perfect time. "Kiss of Sleep!" she cried.

Cye suddenly screamed out in pain as the two surekills hit him. Sekhmet was knocked to his feet by Torrent's surekill, but he quickly got to his feet and stared at the young boy.

Cye was feeling very sleepy all of the sudden. He shook his head slowly, and took a step forward, when he suddenly fell forward. His armor vanished, and then his subarmor, leaving him in regular clothing. He was motionless.

Kania put her daggers away. "That was easy," she commented.

Sekhmet only grunted in reply as he lifted Cye's light body. "At least he's the lightest one."

A gateway appeared, and they went through it.


	6. Chapt.6 Troubled News

****

Cye's Struggle

Chapt.6. Troubled News.

The other four Ronins were still battling. They had learned that new warlord was actually a warlady known as Delia. Her surekill, Ultimate Pain was powerful. But she also learned that Ryo's Flare Up Now! was just as strong. She had a huge dent in her armor.

"You'll pay for that, Wildfire!" she snarled. 

"I'm shaking!" Ryo sneered.

"Arrrggghh!" 

Rowen could tell that Sage was having a bad time with Cale. It was dark around Sage, and Sage needed the light to strengthen him. "Sage," he said, and leapt into the ari. He fired an arrow, and it struck Cale in the back. Cale screamed in pain, then turned on Rowen.

"Black Lightning Slash!" he cried. The surekill hit Rowen, and he screamed in pain as he knocked into the back wall.

"ROWEN!" Sage cried. Now he was furious! "Thunder Bolt Cut!" he screamed.

Cale turned just in time for the surekill to hit him. He screamed out in pain as he flew out of the house. Sage took the time to go to his injured friend. Rowen was unconscious and bleeding from the head. Sage placed his hands over the injury and began to glow green as he healed Rowen. The bleeding stopped and the wound faded, but Sage knew that Rowen was going to need a safe place to be. He picked up his friend and carried him out of the battle invested kitchen.

Kento was getting frustrated. Half of Mia's kitchen was already ruined, and he knew that later she would be pitching a fit about it. It wasn't their fault. The Warlords had attacked first. Dias wasn't making things any easier for him either. Three times he had falled victim to Dias's pranks.

"Stop hiding behind your illusions, Magic Man!" Kento spat.

"I don't need illusions just to beat you, Hardrock!"

"The prove it!"

"Web of Deception!"

Kento dodged the sticky web, but it caught him anyway. He struggled against it. Ryo saw him in trouble and knew he would have to help him. Rowen was injured and Sage was with him, Cye was missing. What else could go wrong today?

Ryo was now angry. This Delia was getting on his last nerves. He brought his swords together and then leapt into the air. "Flare Up Now!" he cried. Delia screamed in as the pain consumed her. She traveled right out the window, breaking the glass. Ryo took the opportunity to free Kento.

"Thanks, man," Kento said, picking up his staff.

"Sure, Kento. Let's get Dias, shall we?"

"Right!"

Dias only laughed at them. "Not this time, Ronins!" He teleported away.

"Dias, you coward! Come back and fight!" Kento shouted into the air.

Ryo shook his head. "He's gone, Kento."

"The chicken!"

Cye was slowly coming to in a cold half lit cell somewhere inside Talpa's castle. His eyes fluttered a few times before they finally opened. "Huh? What!" He lifted his head to gaze around the cell.

"No," he said softly as he shook his head. "No!" He tried to bring his arms out from behind him, but they were chained to the wall. And he could not break them. Had he been wearing his armor, he could have probably broke them.

"Well, you're awake!"

Cye looked toward the bars. A girl with long black hair with pink stripes and azure eyes, stared through the bars at him. In one hand she held a candle close up, and Cye could see her smiling at him.

"I guess that Kiss of Sleep worked better than I thought. "She simply stared as Cye's eyes widened with recognition. "You were out for one hour."

"You…" Cye began. "Who are you, and why did you bring me here?" he demanded.

"Feisty aren't we?"

Cye glared at her as he struggled to break the cuffs holding him. She teased him. "Now, now, Torrent. Don't go and try anything rational."

Cye glared at her even more. She sighed. "Oh, very well. I suppose it couldn't hurt to tell you, cutie."

Under normal circumstances Cye would have blushed, but in situations like these he did not. He waited for this girl to tell him why she and Sekhmet had brought him to Talpa's castle.

Talpa saw that you were down on your luck today, and sent Sekhmet and me after you, while the other warlords and some soldiers distracted your friends from helping you."

So that was why no one came out to help, Cye thought, lowering his gaze for a moment. He felt her staring at him, then lifted his head to look back at her. She stared thoughtfully at him. He really is cute, she thought. Too bad we can't turn him, but his heart is too pure.

Kania!" a familiar voice hissed. Kania slowly turned her head and smiled a little at the purple haired girl glaring angrily at her, who had her hands on her hips.

"What?" she asked innocently.

"What are you doing down here with him?" the girl demanded, pointing at Cye, while straring straight at Kania.

"Oh, relax, Delia!" Kania said. "I just came down to check on him, that's all. No harm done."

Delia smirked. "Well, don't get too attached," she warned. "After all, we don't want to ruin Master Talpa's plan now do we?"

Kania shook her head. "No."

"Good," Delia said, patting her shoulder. She turned and glared at Cye. He shuddered and looked away. When he dared to bring his head back around, he could see Delia leaving.

She's cold, he thought. How could one girl be so full of hate and anger? he wondered.

He looked back at Kania who smiled at him, and left, taking that candle with her. Cye let out a deep breath. I've got to get out of here before Talpa decided to send me to those Gargoyals. He suddenly tensed as he remembered. He, Sage, and Kento had all been captured. Cye remembered the fight with Red Torrent, destroying the imposter, then getting knocked unconscious by the poison that had come out of the carcass shell. When he had woken, he found himself in a cell similar to this one, only Sage was in there as well. Sage had healed the effects of the poison, and it wasn't long before Kento joined them. Once he did, they slept in the cell for about one day, before they had been transported to the Gargoyals where they had lived with pain for a week straight. Cye had lost count how many times, he, Sage, or Kento had awakened screaming from a nightmare from that one hellish week.

Cye began to shake as tears ran down his cheeks. Please, not the Gargoyals. Please not the Gargoyals again!

Talpa watched Cye on his Viewing Screen. He had no pity for the boy. In fact he was quite happy seeing Torrent shake and cry like that. Once had broke Torrent's spirit altogether, then he would use it against the other Ronin Warriors and destroy them one by one. Or maybe he should let them try and rescue and their young friend and have them captured, then kill them all before Torrent's eyes, before he killed Torrent himself, or turned him into a slave, once he had the armor.

Talpa laughed evilly. It would take some careful planning.


	7. Chapt.7.Doubled Problems.

****

Cye's Struggle.

Chapt.7. Double Problems.

Sage stared at Rowen's form. He hadn't left Rowen's side since he had brought him up to their room. Ryo and Kento came upstairs about an hour ago to tell him that Dias and that new warlady Delia were gone, and that Cye was missing. Sage felt concern for the young warrior, but he did not want to leave Rowen's side. Mia had come and wiped Rowen's face with a cool, damp rag, while Kento and Ryo and White Blaze went out to search for Cye.

They had returned empty handed.

"Man, I know the Dynasty's got him, Ryo!" Kento bellowed as the two teens and tiger headed up the stairs. Mia heard them coming, but didn't leaving the room. She looked back toward Sage. Sage and Rowen were such good bestfriends that it almost seem like they were brothers. She knew that Sage was not going to leave Rowen's side until he woke up.

Ryo, Kento, and White Blaze entered the room. They both had downcast looks on their faces. Ryo looked toward Rowen. "How is he?" he asked.

"He hasn't woken, Ryo," Mia answered softly.

Ryo nodded. He could feel his friend's pain. And he hated to add more, but… "We didn't find Cye." Now Mia and Sage looked at him. "We looked all over for him. We found footprints in the sand down by the beach, but there was nothing there."

Mia was silent, as she looked down at Rowen. Kento was pacing back and forth angril, pounding his fists together angrily. "I know they have Cye!" he said loudly. "We have to go and rescue him!"

"Just chill, Kento!" Ryo snapped. He was feeling quite frustrated, and he started to blame himself for everything that had happened. He should have sensed that Cye was in danger! Why hadn't he? "We have to think about this."

"No, we don't!" Kento yelled back, his face turning dark with anger. "I say we go in and bust Cye outta there!"

"Kento, did you forger what happened the last time you went to free Cye and Sage? You were captured too!"

Kento was ready to hit Ryo, but Mia intervene. "Stop this! Fighting is not going to solve our problems. You two seem to forger that Rowen is out, and Sage is not going to leave his side until he wakes up. All four of you are going to need to be together to rescue Cye."

Kento and Ryo backed away, mumbling apologies to each other. Sage had heard their words, but he didn't add to them. He kept watch over his friend, while Ryo, Kento, and Mia went downstairs. White Blaze stared at Sage for several moments, before he too turned and went downstairs.

Sage continued to keep his watch. Please wake up, Rowen.

Cye looked up when he heard his cell door opening. Four soldiers stood at the door while Delia stepped inside, carrying a bowl. "Dinner time," she announced with a growl.

Cye stared at her as she came closer. He looked toward the soldiers. They were there to make sure he didn't try anything funny. Delia held the spoonful of food to his face.

Cye turned his head away.

"Come on eat!" Delia demanded. When Cye didn't turn his, she forced him to, glaring into his seablue eyes. "If you don't eat, I swear to you that you will suffer for me having to come down here, and wasting my time, understand fish boy?!"

Cye glared at her, now suddenly feeling angry. He wasn't going to eat no matter what she did to him. For all he knew it could be poison, or something to control him. He wasn't taking the chances. 

"I'd rather starve, then eat something that looks like garbage!" he spat.

Delia struck him hard across the face, her eyes blazing with anger. "You're lucky you're being fed at all!" she snapped. "You're going to be here for a very long time, you know, so I suggest you eat if you want to keep what strength you have!"

Cye's face hurt, but he didn't care. He wasn't eating, and that was that.

Delia was getting very impatient. Torrent was being very stubborn and she didn't like it one bit. With an angry cry of rage, she suddenly smashed her fist against the side of his head, knocking him into unconsciousness.

"That's what you get for wasting my time!" she snapped before leaving the cell. The soldiers followed her, locking the door tightly, not glancing back at the helpless warrior who hung there on the wall.


	8. Chapt.8.Love Complete

****

Cye's Struggle

Chapt.8. Love Complete.

Rowen's eyes fluttered a few times, and he groaned. Sage watched him closely, hardly breathing. Come on, Rowen. And then finally the bearer of Strata opened his eyes.

"Rowen!" Sage leapt from his chair, knocking it backward, and looked down at his friend with joy. Rowen stared weakly up at him. "Sage," he managed to say.

Sage hugged his friend tightly, then let him go. "I was so worried about you. I can't believe you did that!"

Rowen grinned stupidly. "It was either this, or you getting blasted away by Cale. I'm sorry I worried you."

Sage glared at him. "You should be!" But then he smiled. "Don't scare me like that, ever!"

Rowen smiled back and nodded. Three sets of footsteps paraded up the stairs, and Ryo, Kento, and Mia came into the room.

They were all happy to see that Rowen was awake. White Blaze came into the room, and gently nuzzled him with his big head.

"Hey, Ro, how you feeling?" Ryo asked, quietly.

"I'm fine, Ryo," Rowen answered, and then he looked around. "Where's Cye?"

Silence. You could cut it with a butterknife. Kento's fists clenched tightly at his sides. Sage looked down at his feet. Mia looked away, and Ryo's eyes flashed dangerously. Rowen knew something was wrong.

"With Talpa," Ryo finally managed to answer.

Rowen sat up with shock. It was a bad mistake. A sharp pain ran through his head, and he laid back down. His friends stared in concern at him. "How?"

"We're not exactly sure," Sage answered. "While we're being attacked by Cale, Dais, and that new Warlord…"

"Warlady," Ryo corrected.

"Whatever," Sage waved his hand carelessly, and continued on, "Someone else was busy capturing Cye down by the beach. We don't know how they did it."

"I'd say it was Sekhmet!" Kento grumbled. "He's after Cye most of the time."

Rowen was shaking his head. "How on earth did he manage to capture Cye when he was near the water? He would have to have been in armor don't you think?"

"You're right, Rowen," Mia spoke up. "Someone must have been helping Sekhmet. Someone with a lot of power."

"Whoa, wait a minute, Mia," Ryo said, as he looked at her. "What are you saying?"

"I'm saying there could be another Warlord or Warlady out there," she continued, eveing all four boys seriously. "We know that since Talpa is back, he probably found more help, since Anubis is no longer there to kiss his rear."

"That is possible," Sage said, nodding his blond head. He looked at Ryo. Ryo was silent as he stared off into space. "Ryo?"

Ryo snapped back to reality. "Uh? What?"

"You OK?"

Ryo shook his head. "I was just thinking."

"About what?"

"About busting Cye out of the Dynasty."

Kania stared unhappily at Delia who laid on the comfortable bed in their room. Both were dressed in robes. Kania was wearing a beautiful dark blue robe with white stats, and Delia was wearing a royal purple robe. Right now Kania wasn't too happy with Delia, and Delia was ignoring her unhappy looks as she read her book.

"Did you have to knock him out, Delia?" Kania finally asked.

Delia lowered her book and glared at her. "He wouldn't eat," she growled. "I do not tolerate people wasting my time."

"Well, what did you expect? He's a prisoner here! Dang it, Delia! If you were a prisoner, and someone tried to feed you something, you'd think it was poisoned!"

Delia rolled her eyes. "It was poisoned," she seethed. "It was just gruel."

"Gruel? Yuck! No wonder why he wouldn't eat! I'd starve too!"

Delia glared at her. "Shut up, Kania, and just leave me alone!"

Kania stared at her in shock. She shook her head and vanished from the room. She walked down the long hall. Sheese, what the heck is wrong with her anyway? Ever since they joined Talpa, Delia had changed. She wasn't the fun-loving girl anymore. She was grouchy constantly as if she was having her period. What happened to make her like this?

Kania decided to pay Torrent a little visit. She grabbed a candle and lit the wicj, and then headed down to the dungeon. She peered through the bars at the still figure hanging on the wall. His head was down, and if she hadn't seen his chest rising and falling, she would have believed that he was dead. As she stared at him, she couldn't help but almost feel sorry for him. What was it about him that made her have an eye for him?

As if he could tell someone was watching him, Cye slowly awoke. He managed to lift his head to stare at her. "Kania," he said weakly.

"Hello, Torrent," she replied with a smile. "Glad to see you're awake."

"What do you want?"

Kania snapped her head back a bit. She hadn't expected that. "Oh nothing," she retorted. "Just came down to see how well you're suffering. Oh, did you know that Master Talpa has great plans for you?"

"Yippe do da dai!" Cye mumbled sarcastically. He lowered his head, feeling the pain there. He knew that if Talpa was planning something for him, it wasn't great. He would have to escape, and soon. Who knew what that demon was up to?

Kania stared at him, smirking a little. "Well, I better go, and let you suffer in peace." She turned to walk away, then looked over her shoulder at him. "Try to get some sleep," she said gently, and then with a harsher tone, "You might be hanging there for a long time." She walked away, leaving him alone in that miserable cell.

Cye watched her go. Not it I can help it, he thought.


	9. Chapt.9.Discoveries

****

Cye's Struggle

Chapt.9. Discoveries.

Kento was more than ready to go after his best buddy. Once Ryo had mentioned it, he began to think of what he would do to the ones that captured his friend. They would die, a slow and painful death, caused by his hand.

"So when are we leaving?" he demanded

Ryo looked back at Rowen and Sage. Sage was standing up, relieved because his best friend was all right. Rowen was still lying on the bed, still weak. There was no way they could rescue Cye now. "Kento, we're going to have to wait."

"But!" Kento protested. Ryo held his hand up, and the big warrior stopped.

"Kento, we all want to get Cye out of there," Ryo said. "But Rowen is weak, and we can't separate ourselves. If we do, they might come back, and someone else will get captured."

Kento wanted to argue, but decided against it. It was getting late, he noted. But still if anything happened to Cye, someone would pay. With a look of disgust at Ryo, he turned and walked out the door.

"That went well," Rowen remarked sarcastically.

Ryo frowned. He really hated to disappoint Kento that way. He himself wanted to go right into the Dynasty and free Cye, but how would they? Rowen was injured, and was in no condition to fight or protect Mia if someone were to attack, and Sage would surely stay with him, and he wouldn't be able to protect everyone if another warlord or warlady attacked. This was so frustrating! 

Ryo was about to scream when he felt a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Ryo, I know it's tough, but we will rescue Cye. And Kento will get over his anger, you know that."

Ryo nodded and smiled. "I know. Thanks, Sage. I'm going to bed. Good-night, you guys."

"Good-night."

Downstairs in the study, Mia worked on her computer, trying to figure out who Talpa's newest lackeys were. She actually had no idea where to start, and she was worried about Cye. Who knew what they were doing to him in the Dynasty? And futhermore why did they go after him? She knew he had been having a bad day, but didn't know what it was about, and now Kento was in the living room, sulking because they couldn't go and free him.

Mia let out a sigh as she worked feverishly at the computer. She could hear the shower running and guessed that Sage was taking a shower, while the TV in the living room blared out men yelling, and guns going off, and a woman's scream. Finally she came across something. It was another poem.

Mia stared at the screen. She wondered if this poem had anything to do with that new warlady of Talpa's. She read it, her eyes growing wide as she followed the words down the computer screen. The poem talked about weakness and destruction and was in two parts, weakness being first, followed by destruction.

Mia's eyes widened slowly with surprise. She suddenly screamed. "RYO!"


	10. Chapt.10. Weakness and Destruction

****

Cye's Struggle

Chapt.10. Weakness and Destruction.

Ryo rushed out of his bedroom as fast as he could, nearly slamming into Sage and Kento who were also running for Mia's study room. All three boys burst through the door, and saw Mia sitting there safely at her computer, staring wide eyed at the computer screen. All three gave a huge sigh of relief.

"Thank goodness," Ryo breathed. "I thought you…"

"Guys, get over here and read this!" Mia ordered excitedly. All three gathered 

around her computer and stared at the screen.

"Another poem?" Kento inquired with disbelief. "Who's it about this time?"

"Kento, just read it!" Mia urged.

Kento sighed in defeat and turned to look at the screen.

Weakness. It comes when you at least expect it. It does not cease to exist. Feelings are hid and grief held within. Anger shows through to hide what one has on the inside.

Destruction. It can be deadly if let loose. Without one to control it, it will overwhelm. It wants what it cannot have. Struggles are met and hardships can be won. It teaches. It rebukes. It reaches out to you. Listen and be wary, for you know not what I can do.

Kento shook his head. "Weird!"

Sage stared at the poem, reading it over and over again. He looked back at Mia. "Mia, do you think you could print this out? I want to show it to Rowen. He'd want to take a look at this."

Mia nodded and set the printer up. As it printed, Mia saw the thoughtful look on Ryo's face, and knew he was thinking about his battle with that warlady. The printer was finished, and she handed the freshly printed page to Sage, and he left the room as quickly as he could.

"Ryo, what's on your mind?" Mia asked.

"When we were fighting earlier, I only fought with that one new warlord," Ryo said. "And it turned out to be a girl. This poem's in two parts right? So what if there is another one out there like you mentioned earlier?"

Mia looked back at the screen and reread the poem. Kento was silent, thinking of his bestfriend, and hoping he was all right. Somehow he doubted that. He looked at Ryo, then at Mia, wishing someone would say something.

"Ryo," Mia said as a thought came to her, "that warlady you fought. What was she like?"

"Well, she seemed very disturbed," Ryo answered.

"Yeah, a psycho chick," Kento broke in. Ryo gave him a look, and Mia rolled her eyes. Typical Kento.

"Anyway," Ryo continued, "she seemed to have a lot of anger inside, especially when she was fighting me. I fought alot of Dynasty scum, and none of them seem to have that much anger in them. Why do you ask?"

"Because she may be the Warlady of Weakness," Mia said. "And I'm betting the second part of this poem speaks of another warlady. The Warlady of Destruction."

****


	11. Chapt.11.Unexepected Feelings

****

Cye's Struggle

Chapt.11. Unexpected Feelings.

Kania sat at her little vanity, running a brush through her hair. Though her body was moving, her mind was far from what she was doing. She was in deep thought, thinking of the prisoner downstairs in the dungeon. For some reason she could not help feeling sorry for him. Yes, she was good to cover her feelings up, but she didn't use hatred and anger the way Delia did. Just what was Delia's problem anyway? Just because the boy did not want to eat. He had a reason to be suspicious! He was being held prisoner by his enemies, and would expect that. One thing for sure, the boy wasn't stupid.

But what was it about him that attracted her to him? Granted he was good-looking, there was something more. Something she couldn't quite put her finger on. She had never felt this way at all before, and didn't know quite what to call it.

Kania lowered her brush and stared vaguely at her reflection. She wished she could remember her life before she had come to work for Talpa, but she didn't remember much at all. She was sure she had a family once, but she didn't know who they were. She was glad Delia was there with her, even though Delia could be so difficult at times.

Kania sighed softly as she stood up and headed for her bed. As she laid down she let her thoughts wander, having no explanation for what she was feeling. And it had to do with the prisoner.

Sage waited patiently as Rowen read the poem over and over, analyzing each phrase. Rowen was always this way. He liked to take his time reading things carefully before coming up with a direct answer.

Finally Rowen broke away from the poem, and Sage looked up. "Well?"

"There are two of them," Rowen said flatly, as he let his gaze fall onto his darkblue comforter. "Ryo fought with one of them, right? So I'm betting that the other one helped Sekhmet capture Cye."

Sage's eyes widened. "Do you really think so?" he asked. Rowen nodded and ran a hand through his hair. His thoughts turned to Cye. Even though Cye was absent he could still feel him. It must be the armor.

Sage backed away toward the door. "I'm going to let the others know about this. Maybe they figured out the same thing you just did."

Rowen nodded, and Sage slipped out. Once he was gone, Rowen laid his head back on the pillow, and wiped a single tear away.

****


	12. Chapt.12. A Ghost's Return

****

Cye's Struggle.

Chapt.12. A Ghost's Return.

No one was sure they'd be able to sleep. Cye was gone, the Ancient was dead and so was Anubis. Nobody knew where Kayura was. So there was no way they could get into the Dynasty to rescue Cye, even though Ryo was trying to figure that out.

Mia worked constantly at the computer, trying to gain new information about the Dynasty as well as Talpa's newest recruits.

Sage and Rowen were both asleep in their beds, and Kento and Ryo had bunked together. White Blaze had decided to bunk with Mia for the night. After earlier the tiger wasn't sure if anything else wouldn't happen. Better safe than sorry.

The next morning, everyone was up early, including Rowen, which was a surprise. As Ketno came into the kitchen he caught Rowen sitting at the table with a bowl of cereal, and jumped back a little. "Whoa!"

Rowen looked up at him through half closed eyes. "What?" he slurred sleepily.

"You must be sick!" Kento exclaimed. "You're never up this early!"

"Kento, go away," Rowen muttered as he returned to his cereal.

Kento headed for the fridge. "Can't. Starving." He opened the fridge and took out enough food for three people and began to make his turkey and salami sandwiches.

Sage walked in just then. He was still dressed in his green pajamas. The only thing he had done was brushed his hair. He stared at Rowen in surprise.

Rowen looked up. "What?"

"Alright. Who are you, and what have you done with Rowen?"

Rowen rolled his eyes as Sage headed for the bread that Kento so graciously left out. He put two slices of bread in the toaster and grabbed the butter and a knife.

"Where's Ryo and Mia?" Sage asked, staring calmly at the toaster. His toast popped up and he spread butter on both slices, before taking a bite out of one, and turning around to look at Rowen.

Rowen swallowed the last of his milk. "Ryo is out practicing again. Been out there since I woke up. And Mia is still sleeping."

"Mia's still sleeping!" Kento said in surprise. That was stange. Mia was usually the first one up besides Cye or Sage.

"Kento, shh!" Sage scolded, his eyes drifting upward. Kento turned red and finished off his breakfast. He did not want to wake up Mia with his loud manly voice. The last time had had done that… He refused to think about _that_.

Ryo waved his katanas through the air expertly. He was dressed in his armor, and wanted nothing more than to fuel off his frustration and anger. Kento was trying to hide it, but Ryo had heard him crying softly last night.

That was the first time Ryo had ever heard him cry. As for Sage and Rowen, yes they cared about Cye as well. Sage hid his feelings most of the time, and no one was sure exactly why. As for Rowen, he usually let his actions take over feelings. Body movements speak louder than words. And apparently Rowen was very worried about Cye, because as far as Wildfire was concerned, Strata was never up this early.

"Ryo of the Wildfire."

Ryo dropped both blades on the ground, recognizing that voice. His eyes widened with disbelief, and he slowly turned around, his eyes narrowing at the figure dressed in the monk's clothes, and holding the familiar staff standing before him.

"Anubis?"

Ryo was shocked to see the ex-Warlord of Cruelty standing before him. Wasn't Anubus dead? But here he was standing there, dressed like the Ancient, in a black and white robe, and carrying the Staff of the Ancients.

"Say aren't you…?" Ryo began.

"Yes, but I'm alive again. Please don't ask how or why. We must go inside and speak with everyone. This concerns Cye."

Ryo wasted no time. He shed his armor, then his subarmor, and led Anubis inside the mansion. "Hey, guys! Got some news!"

Rowen, Kento, Sage, and even White Blaze came out into the living room. The three boys stopped and stared at the figure standing next to Ryo. Their eyes widened and their mouths hung open.

"A GHOST!" they all screamed.


	13. Chapt.13. A Desperate Plan

****

Cye's Struggle.

Chapt.13. A Desperate Plan.

Anubis cracked a wide smile. "Surprised?" 

"Oh no, Kento said sarcastically, "we just wanted to see how loud we could be!"

Just then Mia stormed downstairs, and boy was she hacked! She glared at Rowen, Kento, and Sage as she came down. "You three are really going to get it! You're loud enough to be heard in America! Have you no resp…" She suddenly trailed off when she saw a very familiar person standing in the living room. "Anubis?!"

Anubis smiled at her. "Hello, Mia. Good to see you again."

Mia frowned, hardly daring to believe what she was seeing. She glanced back at Sage, Kento, and Rowen. "So that's why you three screamed. I'll let it go _this_ time."

All three hung their heads.

Ryo looked back at Anubis. "Um, Anubis, you said you had something to tell us."

"Yes," Anubis replied, making himself comfortable on the couch. Everyone else sat down and gave him their full attention.

"As you may already know, Talpa has Cye within his stronghold. He has a certain plan for your young friend that will effect all of you. It is important that you rescue him as soon as possible. But it will not be easy. Talpa's newest recruits are very powerful."

"Yeah. We figured that one out already," Sage said.

"Yes, but one of them as feelings for Cye," Anubis continued. "If she were found out, she could be in danger as well."

"I hope it's not the pyscho chick," Kento muttered.

"OK," Ryo said. "I think it's time we come up with a plan to rescue Cye. He's our friend and he trusts us. Right?" He looked back at Anubis. "Anubis, can you get us into the netherrealm?" he asked.

"Yes, but it may be difficult. All four of you should be wearing your armor before you cross the bridge. Talpa's netherspirits will keep you from transforming if you are not wearing them."

Ryo nodded, then looked at Rowen. "Rowen, can you draw a diagram of the Dynasty's castle, and figure out a way for us to get in?"

Rowen nodded and left to get what he would need. He returned minutes later and spread out a long roll of flat paper over the coffee table. He took a dark blue magic marker and began sketching out the inside of Talpa's castle and the area around it.

"OK, here is Talpa's main throne room," he said as he sketched. "Over here would be the first hallway where the bedrooms are kept. Somewhere inside this castle, there has to be an airshaft, but Talpa will be expecting us to either go above, or just come on through."

"OK," Kento said, not really sure where he was getting at. He peered closely at the diagram as if trying to dechiper it.

"So what I'm thinking is that we go underground and pop up through the floor and into the dungeon."

Ryo nodded his head. "Not a bad plan, Ro. Just one question. How do we get underground without them seeing us?"

There was silence. Ryo did have point there. Kento still did not see why they couldn't just go right in and kick some Dynasty butt and free Cye as fast as possible. Sage folded his arms, something he always did while he thought. Mia just stared straight ahead, still numbed. She still refused to believe that Anubis was in this very room with her and four of the Ronins. It seemed impossible!

Rowen's brows wrinkled as he tried to think of a good way to get into the netherrealm and underground before the Dynasty's minions found them out. Finally he brightened. "What about decoys?"

Everyone snapped their heads up at him. "Decoys?" Sage echoed. Rowen nodded like a little boy eagerly awaiting a gift promised. His dark blue eyes went from Sage to Kento to Anubis to White Blaze, who was just laying there on the floor, pouting, to finally Ryo.

Ryo was thinking this all through. He bit his lip, wondering if it could possibly be done. He looked toward Anubis. "Can the Staff make copies of us?" he asked.

Anubis smiled. "The Staff is capable of doing many things, Ryo. So yes, in other words it can."

Ryo nodded, then addressed everyone. "OK, here's what we do. We send the decoys into the netherrealm before us. Once the soldiers are busy fighting against them, we take Rowen's plan, and sneak in and rescue Cye. Oh, and Mia, you have to here."

Mia nodded, knowing she would only get in their way if she tagged along.

Anubis smiled. "I will stay with her. But first let us go outside and get this started."

All four Ronins nodded and followed him outside.


	14. Chapt.14. Helplessness

****

Cye's Struggle.

Chapt.14. Helplessness.

Cye was awake and feeling more miserable than he had ever felt before in his entire life. His muscles were sore and the cuffs cutting into his wrists added to the torture. And being very hungry did not help much either.

He was alone in the dungeon, the other cells having no prisoners at all, so he felt pretty lonely. Once in awhile Cye would see a Dynasty soldier march pass. He shook his head, getting his bangs out of his eyes. He let out a sigh and wondered when his friends would show up to rescue him. He hoped it was soon. He wasn't sure how much longer he could take hanging around, and he wasn't putting that phrase as a joke either.

He heard footsteps and lifted his head to stare through the bars. "Kania," he said quietly.

Kania smiled, almost warmly. She was holding a tray of eggs, bacon, and toast. "You remembered my name, Torrent. How sweet." She unlocked the door and sauntered inside.

Cye stared hungrily at the food. He suddenly wondered if this was how Kento felt whenever he got one of his hunger attacks. Kania approached him, steadily balancing the tray with ease.

Kania slowly reached for a fork while eyeing the young boy. "You will eat won't you?"

"It's not poisoned, or enchanted is it?"

Kania took a bite out of everything. Cye watched her carefully. When she acted no different, he accepted the food. Kania fed him patiently, noticing how he chewed with his mouth closed.

"You're polite," she said, causing him to blush. She laughed gently. "Relax, fishboy. I'm just surprised to see a teenager who has more manners than an ancient warlord."

Cye could not laugh, nor could he smile. He was miserable and wanted to go home. He let Kania feed him until all the food was gone. Cye was full now so that was one less problem there. Now if only he could get out here.

Kania turned away and stopped when noticed Cale and Dias standing behind her. "Oh, you two startled me!"

Cye looked past her and his eyes narrowed angrily at the two Warlords. What did they come down here for? he wondered bitterly. To beat me? That's just what I need right now. More misery.

"Master Talpa wants Torrent in the throne room," Dias said as he and Cale moved past Kania. Kania only smiled and nodded once before taking her leave.

Cye eyed the two wryly. He did not trust them at all. And he did not trust Talpa either for that matter. Yet, there was little he could do. He wasn't wearing his subarmor, nor his armor, his orb was gone, and Cale and Dias were incredibly strong right now. But still it wouldn't hurt to try.

As if sensing his attempt before it happened, Cale grabbed Cye's arm and held it tightly while Dias loosened the cuffs. Cye frowned, now realizing his situation before him.

The two warlords marched him through the dungeon, up the stairs, through a hall, past a corridor, and into the throne room.

Cye took one look at Talpa and screamed loudly. He broke free of Cale's and Dias' grasps and turned tail and ran for it!

Talpa calmly lifted his hand and Cye stopped short. He was stunned. Talpa held him tighty as if he were a puppet. He couldn't move! He felt himself being lifted into the air and drawn quickly back with incredible force.

Talpa rudely dropped him on the floor, right on his back. Cye groaned and lifted his eyes to look up at the evil Dynasty master.

"Did you really think you would be able to escape, Torrent?" Talpa bellowed angrily as he stared down at the poor boy. "You are gravely mistaken. I will not give you the chance to get away. I have big plans for you, boy, and I will not see them wasted!"

Cye was getting a bad feeling. He knew that Talpa was up to no good, but what could he do? He was paralyzed from the neck down. Where had Talpa gotten this new power of his? And what plans did he have?

He could try anything, Cye realized with fear. I can't give him the chance to control me or my armor. He could use me to hurt my friends, and I don't want that. There has to be a way to keep him from achieving that goal. If I only knew how.

"Badamon!" Talpa suddenly bellowed out. A floating blue spirit suddenly appeared, calmly floating over to Talpa. Badamon was the high priest of the netherspirits, and he obeyed Talpa without question.

"You called, Lord Talpa?" Badamon said as he bowed.

"Yes," Talpa said. "Now is the time for my plan to come out into the open, something my Warlords and Warladies had been waiting so patiently for."

Dias, Cale, Sekhmet, Delia, and Kania all stood at attention, looking very curious indeed. Badamon let out a smile and slowly turned to look down at Torrent.

Cye's gaze met with Badamon's, and the young Ronin suddenly knew he was in trouble.

Badamon raised both hands, and Cye rose into the air. His eyes widened with shock as the floor left him. His heart started pounding against his chest, and he could not keep his fear away.

Badamon began chanting. The words were unfamiliar to Cye, but they were sure doing something to him. He began to glow a light blue, and his Kanji of Trust appeared on his forhead, shining brillantly.

Cye suddenly let out a long scream of pain.


	15. Chapt.15. Into the Dynasty

****

Cye's Struggle.

Chapt.15. Into the Dynasty.

Anubis and the Ronins stood a few feet away from Mia's mansion. The Ronins were all tenese, and in their full armor. Their minds were on Cye, and they were all wanting to get this done as soon as possible. Mia stood on the porch and wantched them. She knew all of them were more than eager to get Rowen's plan underway.

"Stand in a circle around me, Ronins," Anubis instructed.

All of them obeyed, and Anubis held the Staff outward. "Staff of the Ancients, hear me! Create now a double of the four Ronin Warriors here before me!"

The rings on the Staff began clanging noisily. Light shot out from the Staff and engulfed each Ronin Warrior. Ryo, Sage, Kento, and Rowen began glowing their respective colors. The lights joined together with the light of the Staff, creating one bright light. The light soon disappeared, and the decoys appeared.

"Whoa!" Sage exclaimed, staring at his double, which was dressed in a Halo armor.

"This is cool!" Ryo said, grinning at his double. "I always wanted a twin!"

Rowen was smiling as he stared at his double. He was quite pleased, and could hardly keep from holding still. This defies all Scientific Propranganda that says there's no such things as look alike decoys unless their identical twins. Humph! Shows how much they know!

Kento stared at his double with a surprised look on his face. He was shocked. "I… I didn't think it would work at first," he admitted.

Anubis chuckled. "Like I said, the Staff if capable of many things. Now, you must prepare to rescue your friend!"

With that said, Anubis turned and raised the Staff high above his head, pointing it toward an open area. The Staff began to glow once again, and the Ronins and White Blaze tensed with readiness as the air around them began to pick up.

And then, there it stood, about fifty feet above them. A Dynasty gate. All of their hearts were pounding against their chests with anticipation. White Blaze roared, eager to go.

Anubis turned around. "There. It is done. Just remember, Ronins. The Dynasty much be distracted by the decoys. Hardrock, you must create an underground tunnel in which you and the others will travel through, while the decoys go on through the Gate along with White Blaze so there is no suspicion. Your armors will lead you to Cye. Be careful and good luck!"

"OK," Ryo said as he rubbed his hands. "Let's get this started."

Kento blasted away the ground with his Iron Rock Crusher. A nice tunnel was made, but it was only big enough for them to be in a single line and on their knees.

"Geeze, Kento," Sage complained. "Couldn't you have at least made this a little bigger?"

"Oh, quit complaining, Cassanova," Kento retorted. "It's the best I can do."

Sage sighed, knowing Hardrock was right.

Rowen shook his head at the two, then noticed Ryo was already crawling forward at an incredible pace! "Hey, Ryo! Slow down! We have to wait until the decoys get through. When we hear the battling, then we can go _faster_!"

Ryo stopped and looked back, a little disappointed. "I guess you're right, Rowen. I just want to save Cye."

"Took the words right out of my mouth," Kento said.as he crawled along.

Sage followed behind Rowen with Kento behind him. I feel like a baby, he thought bitterly. If I didn't care so much for Cye, I wouldn't be doing this!

Rowen was silent now, and his ears were listening for any sounds. And finally they heard the Gates being opened, the familiar sound of the Twister ride, and the sounds of their own voices screaming, before it suddenly got still and quiet.

"Well, they're in," Rowen said as he crawled along. "Now all we have to do is wait."

The wait wasn't long. They all heard, "Ronin Warriors! Soldiers attack!"

Ryo's order was quick and sharp. "Let's move!"

And all four crawled faster than an ant would.


	16. Chapt.16. Torture

****

Cye's Struggle.

Chapt. 16. Torture.

Cye could barely breathe, nor could he move. He was bound tightly with silver bindings that had suddenly appeared on him, and they were sending electrical shocks into him about every five seconds.

Cye screamed loudly, begging for this to stop. Huge tears ran down his cheeks as his body was engulfed with burning pain.

"Join Lord Talpa, and you will be free of this pain you now face," Badamon promised.

Cye glared at him through red, wet eyes. "I'd rather be killed by Sekhmet!" he growled through clenched teeth.

Sekhmet stepped forward. "An honorable idea, Torrent! I shall oblige…"

KaZap! Sekhmet suddenly flew backward. Talpa glared at him angrily. "Fool! I want Torrent kept alive!"

"Oooooookaaay," Sekhmet groaned. He weakly stood up.

Delia stared at Torrent, feeling no pity whatsoever. Her arms were folded against her chest. She was growing impatient for whatever they were all waiting to see.

Kania felt differently though. Each time Torrent screamed out in pain, she sympathized. She wished they would finish doing whatever they were planning so he wouldn't have to feel this pain.

Cye screamed again, loudly this time. The pain was intense! He felt like all of his insides were going to come out piece by piece. The Warlords and Warladies covered their ears.

"I never knew Torrent could have such a high voice!" Cale complained.

"Can we gag him?" Dias begged.

"No," Talpa said. "I want to hear him scream in agony."

All three Warlords groaned.

Badamon released another shock into Cye. His body jerked violently, and the silver bindings tightened against his skin, burning him through his clothes. If only the others were here, he thought before he suddenly passed out from the immense pain.

Kania approached Torrent cautiously, and placed her hand on his neck. His pulse was still beating and he was still breathing. "He's unconscious," she said, hiding her relief.

"Yes," Talpa said with a wicked smile. "And I know all of you are eager to learn what this torture session is about."

"The thought did enter our minds, Master Talpa," Dias replied.

Talpa laughed wickedly. "I have two kinds of plans for Torrent, an original and another one as a backup plan. The first plan will be to weaken Torrent's defense shield. Once that happens, and the Ronin Warriors show up, we will kill all of them right before his eyes, adding more to his pain. And then I will force him to work for us, adding more to his misery before he finally crumbles and dies himself."

"And the second plan?" Delia wanted to know. 

"If the Ronin Warriors do somehow manage to free Torrent, he will be plagued by memories of this. He'll soon began to feel useless and unwanted, and he'll began to distrust his own friends. Without Torrent, the Ronin Warriors will fall, since Torrent will no longer be able to hold them together."

"And what if that does not work?" Cale demanded. "Won't he remember what we did to him?"

Talpa smiled evilly as Badamon stepped forward. "If the Ronin Warriors manage to rescue their young friend, I will pay Torrent a visit and cause him to lose all memory of us torturing him. He will remember the torture of course, but he will not remember that we were the ones who caused it, and he will slowly lose control over himself."

"Sounds good," Dias said, nodding his head.

There was a soft moan, and all of them turned to look at Torrent.

Cye slowly opened his eyes, wondering what had happened to him. His focus sharpened, and he suddenly realized where he was. I'm still in Talpa's throne room. What did they do to me? I hurt so much!

"He's awake," Sekhmet said with a grumble. Boy, did Cye want to flip him off, something he had never done before in his entire life. What was wrong with him? He felt very weird, almost cocky. And he felt weak.

"Badamon, release him. I want him back in his cell. Dias and Sekhmet can take him back."

"No cell," Cye said sluggishly. "Home."

Talpa laughed. "This will be your home, Torrent!"

"No. Home at Mia's. Home now!"

Talpa smirked and rolled his eyes. The boy was absolutely hopeless, he thought as he watched Badamon take the silver bindings away from Torrent.

Cye still couldn't move. The silver bindings were gone, but his body was just too sore. He watched as Dias came near him, and groaned when he was lifted up and over the Warlord's shoulder.

Cye glanced up at Sekhmet. "Phew! You smell, snake-breath! When's the last you took a shower?"

Sekhmet glared down at Cye, ready to rip him to pieces for that insult. Cye wasn't done yet.

"You know, they have stuff to take care of the smell under your arm pits. It's called deodorant."

"I'm going to kill him!" Sekhmet screamed before Cale grabbed him.

"What is wrong with Torrent?" Delia asked, moving over to help Cale hold the angry Warlord. Talpa himself was staring at Cye, a little surprised himself. As if he could tell that, Cye suddenly looked up at the evil Dynasty Master.

"Did anyone ever tell you that you look like an old lady? I mean come on! White hair is so outta style now! You should dye it. Black would look good on you."

Talpa glared at him, then looked at Badamon for an explanation. 

"He's delirious," Badamon said. "Do not fear. It will wear off soon when he passes out again."

Cye looked toward him now. "If you were greener and uglier, you'd be a gremlin," he said before he suddenly passed out.

"See?" Badamon said with a pleased smile.

Talpa nodded his head. So it wasn't Torrent acting on his own. That must have been strong energy Badamon sent into Torrent. It was funny how humans always reacted to something that entered their bodies. Take Strata for example:

Talpa remembered it well. He had sent Cale up against the Ronins a few months ago to capture them when Cale had shown up completely embarrassed. Strata as it seemed had eaten a tube of soft candy known as taffy. Strata had become very hypered indeed. Talpa wasn't sure what happened exactly, but he knew that Cale had left because Strata had suddenly flung mud into his eyes, and pulled down his pants right in public, leaving all the Ronins and passerbys to laugh at him.

Talpa narrowed his eyes and looked toward Dias and Sekhmet. "Take him back now, before he wakes up again."

The two bowed and teleported from the room.


	17. Chapt.17. Trouble

****

Cye's Struggle.

Chapt. 17. Trouble

There was a huge battle going on above the crawling Ronins They could all hear their surekills being cried out, and just knew that so far Rowen's plan was working. Now all they had to was get into Talpa's castle, find Cye, and get out of there as soon as possible.

Kento was agitated though. Why couldn't they have just blasted right on through? This was taking far too long! They could have already been into the castle by now. Cye could be suffering for all they knew, while they were taking the slowest way!

Ryo felt as if they were closer to Talpa's dungeon. They would bust through the ceiling and hopefully be in the dungeon room. They would get Cye and bust out there. One thing bothered him though. Why did Talpa capture Cye? It didn't make any sense. Cye was the weakest of them, and didn't have much power. So what could the evil demon be planning? Or did it have something to do with the way Cye had been acting yesterday?

Ryo didn't know. He only knew that they had to find Cye and rescue him before it was too late.

And then they heard it.

"These aren't the Ronin Warriors!"

"Uh oh!" Rowen exclaimed.

"They're onto us!" Sage cried.

"Oh, man!" Kento wailed.

"Move it!" Ryo ordered.

They crawled as fast as they could, their muscles aching because of the crampness. They heard someone shout for them to be found and to inform Talpa that they were somehow sneaking into the castle. Ryo could see a wall up ahead. Almost there. Hang on, Cye.

They crawled and crawled, hardly breathing. They could hear the Dynasty searching for them, and knew it was highly possible for them to be found. None of them cared though. They had come to rescue Cye, and were going to succeed no matter how hard it would be.

"I'll be so glad when we get Cye and get out of here," Sage said in a whisper.

"Yeah, me too," Rowen said

"Don't worry, guys. I see a wall up ahead," Ryo informed them.

"When we get home, I am having a snack."

"A snack?" Sage said as he raised on brow. "Or a gourmet meal?"

Kento blushed.

They came to the wall at last. "So, how do we get through?" Kento asked.

"We push it, how else?" Rowen statted matter of factly.

"Wait, we can't all push it at the same time," Sage said. "It's too narrow in here."

"Kento could do it. If he wasn't in the back," Rowen said.

"Well, it ain't my fault you all jumped in first."

"We were afraid you'd get stuck."

"Shut up, Rowen!"

"Come on, you guys!" Ryo chided. He was getting a little irritated, and wanted this whole thing to be over. One thing for sure, if he found Cye badly hurt or even dead, he was going to strangle Talpa and make him wish he had never been born, or that he hadn't become immortal. Ryo sat on his rear, and pressed both feet against the wall. He pressed with all his might, and the wall did not give. He kept on trying though.

Sage suddenly glanced behind him as all of them felt the presence of evil. "Hurry, Ryo! They're coming in here!"

Ryo suddenly kicked his feet against the wall. It still didn't move. Kento finally lost his patience, crawled over everyone, nearly crushing them, and laid over Ryo as he put his fist into the wall, making a good size hole. Ryo kicked the wall away, and all of them bolted through and out of the tunnel. They ran for a good three blocks when they were suddenly surrounded.

****


	18. Chapt.18. Hope

****

Cye's Struggle.

Chapt. 18. Hope

Cye opened his eyes and glanced around. He was back in his nightmare, this time with a headache. He managed to get a look at his watch, seeing that it was after 11:00 A.M. He had no idea how long he had been out, but he was figuring it had been for quite awhile.

Where are the other Ronins? he wondered. They're my friends. They should have been here by now. I want to go home! But Cye was beginning to think he wouldn't be able to go home. He had been here since about 2:30 P.M. yesterday. And no one had shown up to help him. Cye was wondering if his friends had betrayed him.

But they couldn't have. They're my friends. Something must have kept them from helping me. After all it took Ryo and Rowen a week to rescue me, Sage, and Kento. They'll come for me. I know it.

He let out a sigh, wondering how he could stand to be so patient. Kento was totally different. He couldn't wait for anything, much like Ryo.

He heard footsteps and lifted his head. A soldier marched past, eyeing Cye as it did so. And then Cye saw someone else coming.

"Sekhmet!" he seethed angrily.

"Well, Torrent, how's it hanging?" Sekhmet laughed mockingly. "You and I have a score to settle you know."

Cye gulped when he opened the cell door and drew his Snake Fang Swords. His eyes widened with fear as Sekhmet began to call his surekill.

"Snake Fang Strike!"

Cye screamed loudly in pain, his voice echoing off the wall. Sekhmet was laughing with glee, his mind completely on destroying Torrent once and for all. But Master Talpa wanted Torrent alive. Very well, he wouldn't kill him. He would let Torrent kill himself.

He backed off, staring at Torrent. Cye was shaking and tears streamed down his face. "You might as well give in, Torrent. Your friends will never come."

Cye looked up and glared at his enemy. "Yes, they will come. I know it."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Because I have something you don't have. Hope."

Sekhmet rolled his eyes. "You are a fool, Torrent! I still don't see Talpa won't let me finish you off now. It would be so easy. Just one strike, and you'd be dead!"

"Then do it!" Cye suddenly screamed. "Kill me! Get it over with! I can't take suffering anymore!"

Sekhmet stepped back, a little shocked. "On second thought I perfer you to suffer. And I must obey Master Talpa." With that he left the cell and locked it tightly.

Cye watched him go, smirking. Sucker. He shifted the best he could, and then suddenly sneezed. He wiped his mouth on his shoulder, and he looked out the bars.

And then he felt it. His kanji suddenly flared up on his forehead. The other Ronins! They've come at last! I'm getting out of here!

****


	19. 

****

Cye's Struggle.

Chapt. 19 A Desperate Attempt.

Ryo flew through several soldiers, striking them down with his swords, while Sage ran through more, swatting down soldiers with his nodatchi as if they were weeds. Rowen leapt through the air, firing arrows at more soldiers. Kento knocked down soldier after soldier, and finished them off with his three section staff. He was laughing.

"This is what you get for kidnapping my friend, Dynasty scum!" he yelled, and then twirled his weapon above his head. "Iron Rock Crusher!"

The ground shook and split open, the debris of the ground flew through the air, knocking down soldiers, destroying them until there were no more.

Rowen drew back his arrow on his bow. Light shone from the tip, and he drew power from it. "Arrow Shock Wave!" He let loose the arrow and it flew, trailing a powerful light behind it. It struck several soldiers who were coming into the battle, wiping them out.

Sage held his sword high above his head. "Thunder Bolt Cut!" His power went out and through the soldiers. They were gone.

"My turn!" Ryo shouted as he brought his swords together. "Flare Up Now!"

The heat from the blades went out. The soldiers tried to dodge, but it was no good. They were completely destroyed. That was the last of them.

Ryo sheathed his swords and turned around. "Let's go get Cye!"

"Yeah, let's do that!" Sage said.

"You bet!" Rowen said.

"Hang on, Cye!" We're coming for you!" Kento cried happily.

All four ran in the direction of Talpa's castle. Along the way, they had to take out more soldiers who were trying their very best to keep the Ronins from getting into the castle.

"Talpa must losing it," Ryo said as they ran. "All we get for a block is these lousy soldiers."

"I don't think that's the reason, Ryo," Rowen said as they leapt high over a building and onto the other side.

Ryo gave him a strange look. "What do you mean?"

"He wants to tire us out. That's why there's so many soldiers here. Talpa figures that if we get exhausted from fighting too many soldiers, his Warlords and Warladies will have an easier time defeating us."

Ryo understood. "Alright, then. Let's not fight them. We'll run from them so we can keep our strength. If it comes down to it, then we fight, and use our surekills. Got it?"

Everyone nodded.

They kept on running, dodging and sneaking their way around soldiers. They were getting closer to the castle. All of them had thought going underground would work, but somehow their attempt had been found out.

I wonder id we can still get underneath the dungeon somehow, Ryo wondered as they jumped onto the roof of a building, and onto the next roof.

"Ryo, where do you think they're keeping Cye exactly?" Kento asked. "I mean I know they have him in the dungeon, but which one? They wouldn't put him in the Gargoyals would they?"

Ryo shook his head as they kept on running. "I don't know, Kento. For his sake I hope not."

"Cye's not in the Gargoyals," Sage said firmly. "When I was captured I was put into a cell, and Cye was already there. Kento, don't you remember?"

Kento glared at him. "Hey, I tried to forget about that time!"

"Sorry!"

Rowen suddenly stopped, and Ryo smacked right into him. "Hey, Rowen, why'd you stop?"

"I can sense Cye," Rowen said.

The other three stood still. Their kanjis suddenly came to life on their foreheads. Yes. They could sense Cye too! But where was he?

Sage closed his eyes and raised his Halo sword high above his head. He concentrated, and let his soul search. The others were silent as they watched him. Ryo kept glancing around, keeping his guard up in case anyone not wanted should appear.

Sage finally opened his eyes. "He's somewhere underneath us," he said.

"Then, let's keep walking until his presence gets stronger," Ryo said. He turned and began walking with the others right behind him.

Cye's presence was getting stronger. They could feel it as their kanjs grew brighter and brighter.

"Boy, if our kanjis would appear when we wanted them to, we wouldn't need a flashlight at night," Ryo said.

"Could always have Sage light up."

"Kento, when we rescue Cye and get back to Mia's, remind me to kill you."

Kento gulped. "Come on, let's just find Cye!"

Rowen smiled as they ran on.

They came across a group of soldiers. The Ronins fought against them, destroying them with fierceness. No one was going to stop them from saving their friend!

Rowen leapt out of the way of a weighted chain and landed some feet away. He suddenly felt it. Cye. He was underneath his feet! "Alright!" Rowen cried happily. "We found him!"

He looked up, and kicked a soldier away from him, and flipped another over his shoulder. "Hey, guys! I found him! Cye's underneath me!"

Ryo swiped at a soldier, running it through with his Wildfire blades. "Hold that place, Rowen! We have to get rid of these soldiers first!"

Rowen fired his arrows. "No problem."

Sage saw a soldier sneaking behind his friend and quickly took it out. Rowen smiled at him. "Thanks."

Sage smiled back, then flipped his sword out and behind him, right through the face of another soldier.

"Surekill time!" Ryo cried as he brought his swords together. "Flare Up Now!"

"My thoughts exactly!" Kento cheered. "Iron Rock Crusher!"

"Arrow Shock Wave!"

"Thunder Bolt Cut!"

The four powers went out, blasting away the soldiers until all were destroyed. Ryo and Kento joined Sage and Rowen. Both could feel Cye's presence very strongly.

"So how do we get to him?" Kento wanted to know.

"We smash through, how else?"

Ryo shrugged. "Works for me!" With that he leaned down and began punching his fist into the ground. The other three joined him. The ground was cracking, slowly giving away. But one thing bothered them though. Why hadn't any of the Warlords and Warladies appeared?


	20. 

****

Cye's Struggle

Chapt. 20. Freedom?

Cye felt the other Ronins' presence very strongly. He heard a crunching sound above him, and suddenly realized what was going on. They're coming in from above. I hope they make it soon, because I don't want…

His thoughts suddenly trailed off when he saw a very familiar person glaring at him. "So your friends found you, eh? Well, sorry, Torrent. They're going to lose you. Master Talpa wants you again."

"I don't want him," Cye muttered as Delia came into the cell. Four soldiers surrounded him, grabbing onto his arms as Delia loosened the cuffs. Cye suddenly kicked a soldier away, sending it into the wall where it crumbled. He elbowed two more holding him, bruising his elbows, and flipped another one over his shoulder, before slamming its head into the floor, destroying it. He leapt to his feet and bolted for the door when he was jerked back roughly.

"What do you think you're trying to prove, fishboy?" she snarled, holding him tightly. "Master Talpa wants you now!"

A loud crashing sound caused them both to turn around. Ryo, Sage, Kento, and Rowen glared at her.

Cye's face brightened.

"Lady, you better let our friend go, unless you want to get toasted!"

"Oh, really, Wildfire? I am so scared!" A sword suddenly appeared against Cye's throat, and he froze in terror.

The other Ronins stopped. They could see that Cye had gone pale, and that he was shaking. And they could also see the sword pressed against his throat.

"One step closer to me, Ronins, and Torrent dies!" Delia said. "And don't think of using your surekills! I'll make sure he's in the way!"

Ryo was thinking as fast as he could while the others were praying that someone would come up with something. They watched in horror as Delia began to drag Cye up the hall.

"NO!" Kento shouted. He had stood still for long enough. No one was taking his best friend anywhere, especially to Talpa. He charged forward with the others right behind him.

Delia heard them coming, and lashed out with the flat of her sword, knocking Kento several feet backward, right into his friends. All four fell, their arms and legs in a tangle.

"Humph!" Delia snorted, then began to drag Cye again.

"Let me go!" Cye cried as he tried to pull lose. The sword reappeared at his throat, and he stopped.

"You will refrain from giving me a hard time, Torrent! Master Talpa wants you in the throne room right now!"

A few minutes later Sage opened his eyes and groaned. He looked around, seeing that the lady and Cye were both gone. One by one the others woke up.

Ryo stood up. "Where's Cye?"

"Probably in Talpa's throne room by now," Sage said unhappily.

"Well, then what are we waiting for?" Kento said. "Let's get there and get Cye!"

"I don't think so, Ronins!"

Cye was trembling and tears of pain streamed down his face. The silver bindings were wrapped around his small frame and were sending electrical shocks into him, causing him to cry out in agony. He knew his friends were somewhere in the castle, and that comforted him, but Talpa had sent his warlords and the Delia after them, along with several soldiers, and he did not know whether or not they could be able to get to him in time.

Cye screamed again, his body thrashing violently. Badamon had a superior look on his face as he continued to torture the youngest Ronin.

"Please stop! I can't take it anymore!" Cye begged futilely. 

Badamon only laughed in reply.

Kania watched sadly. Her heart ached for him. Lately, the feelings she had for him were getting stronger, and it was all she could do not to cry for him. She turned her face away.

Talpa saw that. "Is something wrong, Kania?" Don't you like my torture for Torrent?"

Kania did her best to nod. "It's just freaking me out the way he is screaming like that, my lord."

Talpa eyed her carefully, then glanced at an unconscious Torrent. Badamon was taking a break. He would torture Torrent further when he awoke. But something bothered him. He had been noticing the pity looks Kania had been giving Torrent, and even knew she had been visiting him without permission. She also fed him something he was not supposed to be fed.

But what to do about it. If he punished her, she could very well turn against him, and he did not want that. She was an excellent warrior, one he could not afford to lose. But what if he gave Torrent to her? She could very well be able to get to switch sides. Yes, it just might work.

"Kania," he said, causing her turn around and look directly at him. "I know you've had your eye on Torrent ever since I had him brought here." He did not fail to notice the scared look in her eyes. "So, I'm thinking of giving him to you."

Kania's eyes widened with delight. She could hardly believe it! Torrent would be hers, and forever! Oh, what luck! He is so good to me, she thought, glancing over at Cye'still body.

"Forget it!" someone snapped. "No one's having Cye at all!"

"WHAT?!" Talpa turned his head and nearly lost his jaw. Ryo of the Wildfire! He was here! But how? And where the other three, and that stupid cat of Wildfire's? Wildfire was glaring at Talpa angrily, his blades held tightly and gleaming with deadliness.

****


	21. 

****

Cye's Struggle

Chapt. 21. Love Revealed. 

Ryo glanced over toward Cye, and his temper began to flare higher. He could see that Cye was injured and outcold. He would have to get him out of here as soon as possible.

Talpa wasn't about to let that happen. He pointed toward Ryo. "Attack him!"

At least a hundred soldiers went after Wildfire and he quickly cut them down with his blades. An arrow flew through the air and struck through the chest of one soldier. The soldier dropped lifelessly to the floor.

"Hey, Rowen, glad you could make it," Ryo said with a grin.

"Did you miss us?"

"You bet!"

"Time to rock and roll!" Kento shouted. "Iron Rock Crusher!"

The whole throne room began to shake, and Talpa began cursing loudly. He rose to his feet and pointed at Kania. "Attack them now! DELIA! SEKHMET! DIAS! CALE!"

"Oh, sorry, Talpa. They're all tied up right now," Ryo said with a sneer.

"WHAT?!"

Kania transformed and attacked Sage who was just about to free Cye from the silver bindings. Or at least it looked like it. She actually knocked him away and ripped the silver bindings from Cye.

Sage turned around and stared in surprise as he gently lowered Cye to the floor. He saw her kanji light up brillantly. Love.

Kento saw this Dynasty babe was just a little too close to his friend. "Oh, no you don't, witch!"

Sage looked up in horror and leapt to his feet to stop the big Chinese guy. "No, Kento! Don't! She won't hurt him!"

Kento ran into Sage and tried to get past, but the tall warrior wasn't letting him go anywhere. Around them the battle raged on. Ryo was fighting against Talpa while Rowen was fighting with the soldiers. White Blaze came suddenly and began to help, ripping the soldiers apart with his claws and teeth.

Their surekills sliced through the air.

Sage was reasoning with Kento as he closely watched the Warlady.

Kania stared lovingly at Torrent, her heart aching for him. Sage tuned into his second tight to get a better feel of this girl, and gasped. She really does love him.

Kania lifted Cye into her arms, and gently placed him in Sage's arms. "Take care of him, Halo," she said firmly. "Or I will personally come after you. Got it?"

That was the first time Kania had ever threaten like that. Sage stared deep into her eyes and nodded. And Kania teleported out of the room. 

Ryo was having the time of his life. Never before had this been so easy. Talpa was really losing his touch. He could hardly stay focused! What luck! 

"What's the matter, Talpa? Forget how to fight?" Ryo sneered.

"I will kill you, Wildfire!" Talpa threatened.

"Blah, blah, blah!" Ryo retorted. "Promises promises! Flare Up Now!"

Talpa was hit away by the blast of Ryo's surekill and so were thirty soldiers. Rowen and White Blaze weren't faring that well with the remaining soldiers. Time for good old fashioned cheat way.

"Arrow Shock Wave!" 

The blast hit the soldiers, destroying them on a single blow. Ryo managed to get Cye's armor orb from Talpa without the Dynasty Master realizing it. And before Talpa could climb to his feet, all five Ronins and their cat vanished.

"NOOOOOOOO!" Talpa screamed angrily.

**** ****


	22. 

****

Cye's Struggle.

Chapt. 22. Home At Last

Cye was slowly coming to. He could hear faint voices softly calling his name, and he struggled to open his eyes. When he did he found several people looking down at him with smiling faces.

"Hey, Cye. How ya feeling?" one of them asked.

"You OK, buddy?"

"Can we get you anything?"

"Oh, goody," Cye slurred as his eyes started to close. "I'm surrounded by girls and a marshmellow man." He drifted back into unconsciousness. 

Everyone looked at each other.

"What?" Ryo began.

"Girls?" Sage said with one brow raised.

Mia was laughing. "He called you guys girls! Hahaha!"

"Yeah, and he called Kento a marshmellow man!"

"Shut up, Rowen, before I feed you a knuckle sandwich!"

"Oooh. Ouch!"

"You guys!"

The boys backed off as Anubis stared closely at Cye. "Whatever Talpa did to him affected his brain. Much like the way sweets do to Rowen."

"You mean he's delirious?" Ryo asked.

"Yes, but it should wear off, and he won't remember much of it. I'm going to place the Staff over him to heal of all that Talpa has done to him. If I know Talpa he will use Cye's torture against him and you four."

They stood still, watching as the glowing Staff was placed over Cye. His kanji flared to life, and his body began to relax. When the Staff stopped glowing, Cye opened his eyes.

"Did anyone feed my fish?"

And everyone began to either smile or laugh, and all four Ronins climbed onto his bed, including a big white tiger. It looked like Cye was going to be OK. He was home and that was all that mattered to him, and Cye finally realized that he was loved.


End file.
